Journeyman pipefitters under UA Local 11 in Duluth, MN earn $47.13/hr in base wages, or $74.51/hr as a total package with fringe benefits, effective Mar 2026.
UA Local 11 runs its own dispatch and out-of-work list — call the hall to confirm hours, books and what to bring. Gulfstream is a private recruiter and does not control hall referral.
The Local 11 pay scale for 2026 is $47.13 per hour for journeymen in Duluth, MN, or about $94,260 a year at 2,080 hours. The total package, including employer-paid fringe benefits, is $74.51 per hour. That is the rate in force for 2026, effective 3/1/26.
| Local 11 journeyman hourly wage | $47.13 / hour |
|---|---|
| Total package (wage + fringe benefits) | $74.51 / hour |
| Annualized at 2,080 hours (base wage) | $94,260 / year |
| First-period apprentice (≈45–50% of scale) | $21.21–$23.57 / hour |
| Wage sheet effective | 3/1/26 |
| Classification | Combo |
A Local 11 apprentice in Duluth, MN starts at roughly $21.21 an hour — about 45% of the $47.13 journeyman scale — and steps up each period, reaching around $35.35 an hour by the fourth year and full scale on turning out. These are the standard percentage steps of scale, not a wage sheet Local 11 has published; confirm the exact schedule with the JATC.
| 1st period (year 1) | 45% of scale | $21.21 / hour | $42,417 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2nd period (year 2) | 55% of scale | $25.92 / hour | $51,843 |
| 3rd period (year 3) | 65% of scale | $30.63 / hour | $61,269 |
| 4th period (year 4) | 75% of scale | $35.35 / hour | $70,695 |
| 5th period (year 5) | 85% of scale | $40.06 / hour | $80,121 |
| Journeyman (turned out) | 100% of scale | $47.13 / hour | $94,260 |
UA Local 11 runs its own referral procedure and books are signed at the hall — call 218-727-2199 to confirm dispatch hours, required documents (union card, certifications, ID) and current list standing before traveling in. Contact details are imported from the UA, SMART and IBEW public directories. Gulfstream is a private recruiting firm, is not affiliated with the local, and does not control hall dispatch.
United Association Local 11 represents skilled plumbers, pipefitters, and steamfitters across Northeastern Minnesota and parts of Wisconsin. Based in Duluth, this local serves as a critical labor source for the region's industrial, commercial, and residential sectors. The membership is responsible for installing and maintaining complex piping systems that support the regional economy, ranging from hospitality and healthcare facilities to the heavy industrial infrastructure characteristic of the North Shore. Since 2014, Gulfstream Strategic Placements has monitored this market as a hub for specialized welding and mechanical talent capable of performing in extreme northern climates and regulated environments.
The Duluth market presents a unique landscape for mechanical contractors due to the seasonal nature of outdoor work and the high density of institutional projects. UA Local 11 ensures that signatory contractors have access to a workforce trained in rigorous safety standards and advanced technical applications, including medical gas, high-pressure steam, and hydronic heating. This local maintains a strong presence in the Iron Range, providing the technical expertise necessary for mining and manufacturing operations. For the tradesperson, Local 11 offers a structured career path with standardized protections, while for the contractor, it provides a predictable labor cost model and a reliable pipeline of vetted apprentices.
The economic structure for UA Local 11 members is defined by a clear distinction between take-home pay and the total compensation package. As of March 1, 2026, the Journeyman hourly rate is established at $47.13, which is the taxable base wage. However, the total package reaches $74.51 when including employer-paid fringes such as healthcare and pension contributions. Apprentices progress through a multi-year program where their hourly rate is calculated as a fixed percentage of the Journeyman scale. Typically starting between 45% and 50%, these percentages increase annually or semi-annually as the apprentice completes required classroom hours and on-the-job training milestones. This ensures that as a worker's competency increases, their compensation reflects their growing value to the signatory mechanical primes and specialized plumbing contractors in the Duluth jurisdiction.
The territorial jurisdiction of UA Local 11 is centered in Duluth and extends across the Arrowhead region of Minnesota. The charter covers a significant geographic area including St. Louis, Lake, and Cook counties, as well as portions of neighboring territories. Work under this agreement includes all facets of the piping trades: plumbing, pipefitting, steamfitting, and refrigeration. Members may be dispatched to diverse job sites ranging from downtown Duluth commercial high-rises to remote industrial facilities in the Iron Range. Contractors operating within this jurisdiction must adhere to the travel and subsistence rules outlined in the Collective Bargaining Agreement, which governs how labor is utilized across these vast northern distances and ensures consistent work standards throughout the region.
The contractor landscape for UA Local 11 is comprised of diverse signatory entities ranging from large-scale mechanical primes to localized plumbing service contractors. These firms handle the bulk of the heavy industrial work in the region, particularly projects involving the mining and maritime industries unique to the Great Lakes. While there are currently zero specific contractors tracked on this reference page, the market typically includes specialists in commercial HVAC, institutional plumbing for schools and hospitals, and industrial process piping. Hiring fluctuates based on major capital projects and seasonal shutdowns, with many contractors maintaining a core group of foremen while utilizing the hall for fluctuating manpower needs during peak construction cycles.
The $47.13 Journeyman wage is the hourly rate reflected on a member's paycheck before taxes. The $74.51 total package includes that wage plus $27.38 in employer-paid benefits. These benefits cover health insurance, retirement funds, and training costs, which are paid directly by the contractor into the union's trust funds on behalf of the worker.
Wages and fringe benefits are determined by the Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) negotiated between the union and signatory contractors. Increases are typically scheduled annually on a specific date, such as March 1st. These adjustments may be split between the taxable wage and various fringe benefit funds as voted on by the union membership.
Yes, through the JATC, members can obtain advanced certifications in areas such as orbital welding, medical gas installation, backflow prevention, and various UA welding tickets. These certifications are essential for maintaining the high standards required by industrial and healthcare clients in the Duluth and Iron Range markets, ensuring members remain employable on complex projects.
Transferring, or 'depositing a travel card,' is subject to the rules in the UA Constitution and the current local work list. Generally, a member in good standing from another local may work as a traveler if there is excess demand. Permanent transfers usually require the approval of the Business Manager and may depend on long-term project outlooks.
UA Local 11 is seated in Duluth, Minnesota (MN). We hold published wage sheets for 13 locals across Minnesota — compare nearby scales before you take a call.
We are a mechanical, plumbing and electrical construction recruiting firm serving Duluth and the rest of Minnesota, including contractors signatory to UA Local 11. Our office is in South Corona, California and we place union-scale tradespeople and field leadership nationwide.
Gulfstream Strategic Placements, 4160 Temescal Canyon Road, Suite 401, Corona, CA 92883. Phone (951) 208-7780. Email hello@gulfstreamsp.com. Monday–Friday, 7:00 AM–5:00 PM Pacific.View our verified Google Business Profile
Journeyman scales as last published by each local. Rates change every contract cycle — confirm with the hall.
The Local 11 pay scale for 2026 is $47.13 per hour for journeymen in Duluth, MN, or about $94,260 a year at 2,080 hours. The total package, including employer-paid fringe benefits, is $74.51 per hour. That is the rate in force for 2026, effective 3/1/26.
Journeyman pipefitters under the UA Local 11 agreement make $47.13 an hour in base wages, or $74.51 an hour counting the fringe package, per the wage sheet effective 3/1/26. Overtime, shift premiums, and travel or subsistence pay are added on top under the local's CBA.
$47.13 per hour base wage and $74.51 per hour total package for a journeyman in Duluth, MN, effective 3/1/26. Annualized at 2,080 hours that is roughly $94,260 before overtime.
A Local 11 apprentice in Duluth, MN starts at roughly $21.21 an hour — about 45% of the $47.13 journeyman scale — and steps up each period, reaching around $35.35 an hour by the fourth year and full scale on turning out. These are the standard percentage steps of scale, not a wage sheet Local 11 has published; confirm the exact schedule with the JATC.
About $21.21 an hour, or roughly $42,417 a year at 2,080 hours, based on the standard 45% first-period step of the $47.13 journeyman rate effective 3/1/26. Apprentices also earn benefit contributions and paid classroom progression; the JATC sets the exact percentage.
Around $30.63 an hour at the standard 65% third-period step, moving to about $35.35 an hour in the fourth period and $47.13 an hour at full journeyman scale. Confirm the published step schedule with the Local 11 training center.
The current UA Local 11 journeyman rate is $47.13/hour, with a total package of $74.51/hour including fringe benefits, effective 3/1/26. At 2,080 hours that works out to roughly $94,260 per year in base wages before overtime. Rates change with each CBA cycle — confirm with the Local 11 business office before relying on the figure.
The $47.13/hour figure is the base journeyman wage that lands on the paycheck. The $74.51/hour total package adds employer-paid fringes — health and welfare, pension, annuity, apprenticeship training, and industry funds. Contractors bid work off the total package, so that is the number that matters when comparing plumbers & pipefitters labor costs across locals.
Apprentices under the UA Local 11 agreement are paid a graduated percentage of the journeyman rate, typically starting near 40–50% in the first period and stepping up each six-month or annual period until reaching 100% at turnout. Against the current $47.13/hour journeyman rate, a first-period apprentice would be in the $21.21–$23.57/hour range. The exact percentage schedule is set by the local's JATC.
UA Local 11 is headquartered in Duluth, MN and dispatches plumbers & pipefitters manpower throughout its chartered jurisdiction. Work performed inside that territory falls under the local's collective bargaining agreement and wage schedule, even when the contractor is based elsewhere and travels in.
Most locals require applicants to be at least 18, legally able to work in the U.S., hold a high school diploma or GED, pass a basic math/aptitude assessment and a drug screen, and be physically able to perform plumbers & pipefitters work. Some Local 11 programs give preference to applicants inside the jurisdiction or to veterans. Eligibility rules are set by the local's Joint Apprenticeship and Training Committee (JATC), so confirm the current criteria with the hall before applying.
Apprenticeship applications go through the UA Local 11 JATC, not through a contractor or a recruiter. Applications typically open in defined intake windows each year: you submit the application with proof of age, education, and residency, sit for an aptitude test, and then interview. Ranked applicants are placed on an eligibility list and indentured as signatory contractors call for apprentices. Gulfstream Strategic Placements does not process apprenticeship applications — contact the Local 11 training center directly.
Plumbers & Pipefitters apprenticeships generally run four to five years — roughly 8,000–10,000 hours of on-the-job training plus several hundred classroom hours per year. Apprentices earn a paycheck the entire time, stepping up through the wage periods until they turn out as journeymen at 100% of scale.
Signatory contractors hire through the local's hiring hall, so working under the UA Local 11 agreement generally means being a member or being organized in through the local's process. Journeymen from other locals can travel in by signing the out-of-work book, subject to the local's referral rules and manpower needs. Non-union plumbers & pipefitters professionals are usually placed with open-shop contractors instead — we recruit for both.
Rates move with the collective bargaining agreement, typically on a fixed anniversary date each year of a three- to five-year contract, with negotiated increases split between the base wage and the fringe package. The figures on this page reflect the 3/1/26 schedule; check with the Local 11 business office for any increase that has taken effect since.
Wage rates vary widely by local and market. Use the Union Pay Scale Explorer to sort every UA and SMART local by hourly wage, total package, and annualized pay so you can benchmark Local 11 against neighboring jurisdictions and other plumbers & pipefitters markets.
The UA Local 11 hall is at 4402 Airpark Blvd Duluth, MN 55811, serving Duluth, MN and the surrounding jurisdiction. Hall phone: 218-727-2199.
UA Local 11 runs its own referral procedure and books are signed at the hall. Call the hall at 218-727-2199 to confirm dispatch hours, required documents (union card, certifications, ID) and current list standing before traveling in — Gulfstream does not control hall dispatch.
UA Local 11 can be reached at 218-727-2199. Contact details are imported from the union's public directory listing — confirm hours with the hall.